Graffiti artist puts industrial stamp on The Big Hoot 2015.
Stourbridge graffiti artist Lee Woods is one of the very first artists commissioned to design an owl for Birmingham Children’s Hospital’s The Big Hoot charity art initiative.
Lee who initially started out as a break dancer at the heart of pop culture in the 1980’s exploded into the world of graffiti and took on the persona Mac1 in the early 1990’s.
Celebrated for his photorealistic art, Lee has created a powerful, gritty inspired circular design on a 165cm tall owl statue to raise vital funds for Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
At the centre of Lee’s design for The Big Hoot is an all-encompassing and incredibly powerful eye, something he describes as ‘the corridor to knowledge’. Pulling on many different themes including the wise old owl, this design can be interpreted in many ways.
Presented by public art specialists, Wild in Art, in partnership with Birmingham Children’s Hospital, The Big Hoot will see over 100 beautifully designed owl statues appearing throughout the city over a 10 week period.
At the end of the 10 week trail the owls will be auctioned off with all proceeds going to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
Lee said: “Art is all about pushing boundaries and that’s what I have done with my creation for The Big Hoot. In the early days I didn’t follow a crowd, I became good friends with a local guy who was already on the graffiti scene and he was my inspiration. I instantly fell in love with it and never looked back.
“When the opportunity came to be involved in The Big Hoot I jumped at the chance. It was a fantastic outlet for me to profile my painting which has been motivated by the changing industrial landscape including the framework, the architecture and the stencils found in abandoned factories and unusual spaces.
“These spaces are rich with shapes and are a great stimulation for creativity and art. The blank owl canvas was one of the most unusual back drops I’ve ever experimented on but proved to be a fantastic outline to create something extra special of which I’m extremely proud.”
Lee has been at the forefront of the graffiti movement for over two decades, using spray cans and aerosol paint to create realistic portraits with neat lines. More recently Lee has branched away from this style of graffiti and now mixes this with more unusual stencils, frameworks and patterns.
“The Big Hoot is going to be a fantastic celebration of art and I’m thrilled to be a part of it. The coming together of artists across a breadth of different disciplines is really refreshing and will create a really exciting trail for the city.” Lee added.
Under the alias Mac1, Lee has painted live all over Europe and has sold and exhibited his work to thousands across the globe. His work is constantly evolving as he continues to push the boundaries and challenge what’s possible in modern art.
This project is the latest high profile public art project from Wild in Art, which famously hosted a similar event in Bristol which featured various giant statues depicting Gromit of Wallace and Gromit fame, attracting worldwide headlines.
The company has also created exhibitions in locations ranging from Norwich to Sydney, as well as Transport for London’s Year of the Bus Sculpture Trails, the Clyde Mascot trails for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Olympic mascot trail ahead of London 2012, each significantly increasing footfall to the host cities, helping to give local businesses a boost while generating increased profile.
For more information about the project, visit www.thebighoot.co.uk.